A little bit before their concert, school food punishment gave us some of their time to answer our questions.
On Saturday, just a bit before the concert of the group school food punishment, we held a short fifteen minute interview to reveal some more details about them to their fans.
Hello and thank you for having this interview with us. Could you quickly introduce the group to our readers?
Yumi Uchimura: school food punishment is a group that mixes many genres of music, from pop to progressive rock and electro. Our sound is really varied.
Why did you choose such a name, is school food in Japan really a kind of punishment?
Yumi Uchimura: (laughs) No, in fact, we chose the name because one of the members of the group wore a tee-shirt that said "School Food is Good Food" and we liked the the sound of "school food." We wanted to add another word after it and the sound of "punishment" sounded really good, so we decided to put it into the name of the group! But the name is a little ironic, because the school food in Japan is actually very good. This precise mix of sounds in the name of the group characterizes everything about our music, which is full of beautiful things.
You are a part of the new generation of rock groups who mix many genres, and you have a sound that's soft, airy, and even colorful. Do you think that rock is becoming more and more commercial, at the same level as J-pop?
Yumi Uchimura: With regard to school food punishment, I don't think we've entered that logic; We keep our spirit totally free to music. We had the opportunity to return to a major label, but we kept our mentality intact, and we don't want to make "commercial" music. It's a challenge, but we try to remain the same and remain free.
Exactly, you rejoined major label Sony Music Japan, so why did you decide to return to a major label rather than staying independent and remaining completely free?
Yumi Uchimura: Our music always stays the same, it's just that the opportunity to rejoin a major label allowed us to broaden our audience. The label distributes a huge variety of artists of many genres who have many different audiences, and our music touches many more people now.
Nowadays, in your opinion, what does a group need to do to to be original and set themselves apart from all of the other groups already there?
Yumi Uchimura: Well, in this regard, there are few things. When we participated in a tribute album to JUDY AND MARY, we took one of their songs and we could still broadcast our own identity. While keeping the melodies and the lyrics, we could still make School Food Punishment recognizable through this song. If, in the interpretation of a song of another group, we can distinguish ourselves, by the tonalities of the singing or the use of the melodies, it's that group that is really original. It has its own identity and is not based on a mold.
Speaking of JUDY AND MARY, two former members of the group are making an appearance at Japan Expo this year with their new project ZAMZA'n'BANSHEE - what do you think of the new group?
Yumi Uchimura: In JUDY AND MARY, they already had an enormously successful career, but then afterwards, they continued their work with new musical activities and that's a real challenge. I think they are very brave to start afresh after such success; it inspires us a lot and pushes us to keep going.
In regards to Japan Expo, what do you think of the different artists appearing this year?
Yumi Uchimura: Among the groups this year, there is PUFFY, who I've admired for a long time. This group is an icon in Japan, and it's good because it contributes to the evolution and development of cultural exchange between France and Japan, and we hope to contribute to this development.
Masayuki Hasuo, during a recent interview, you cited the French author Boris Vian as a source of inspiration. What part of your work was most influenced by him? Your music, your writings...?
Masayuki Hasuo: I read his novel "Froth on the Day Dream", "Utakata no Hibi" in Japanese, and I really enjoyed it and was very inspired because it was so imaginative and colorful. It was a little like listening to music, I was very influenced by what he wrote. Him also being a jazz musician, I thought it'd be easy for him to write music as well.
Could the other members give a group or artist who influenced them?
Masayuki Hasuo: Well... (thinks) I like At the Drive-in.
Hideaki Yamazaki: For me, I like a lot of J-pop, especially Sheena Ringo and GRAPEVINE.
Yumi Uchimura: I also like a lot of J-pop. I also like French artists like Vanessa Paradis.
Osamu Hidai: I love music from the 70's, like The Rolling Stones and Janis Joplin for example.
A final message for our readers?
Masayuki Hasuo: The French audience is really very kind, I'd like to return to France soon! We'll give our best during our concert so you'll want to see us again!
And finally, thank you for the interview.
school food punishment: (in unison) Thank you!
